Chapter 39
The ground beneath his feet vibrated unpleasantly.
After passing through the dry entrance and stepping into the wide cavern inside, Chae-ho stopped walking.
The muddy pool filling the area ahead suddenly began to churn violently. Murky bubbles boiled up as if a massive bomb had exploded beneath the water.
A terrible acidic smell rushed through the air and stabbed at his nose.
Soon, with a sticky scraping sound, an enormous figure covered in dark green scales burst out of the mud.
It was a gigantic serpent that rose as high as a three story building. A thick, hideous horn grew from its forehead, while its strange yellow pupils glared in every direction, clearly revealing its identity.
An uppermost C-rank monster, the Venom-Horn Water Dragon.
It was the true ruler of the Gray Swamp, and the main reason the Association recommended entering with a party of at least three hunters.
Most ordinary hunters would lose their will to fight and retreat just from the terrifying size of the creature and the pressure of its deadly poison.
But not even the slightest disturbance appeared on Chae-ho's face.
After noticing the intruder, the Water Dragon let out a roar mixed with a bizarre metallic screech.
At the same time, its massive tail flew toward Chae-ho like an enormous whip.
BOOM!
A huge boulder that had been where the tail swept through shattered helplessly. Sharp stone fragments shot in every direction like cannon shells.
Chae-ho did not bother extending his sword to block them.
He leaned his upper body back slightly and stepped away using only a quick snap of his ankle.
As he barely opened the distance and avoided the first attack, the Water Dragon opened its mouth wide, as if furious that it had missed.
Sssss.
Along with a disgusting smell, a waterfall of venom sprayed everywhere.
The liquid that landed on the muddy ground bubbled and released pale smoke.
Three bottles of the highest grade concentrated antidote purchased from the Association were quietly stored in the outer pocket of Chae-ho's bag.
But he had absolutely no intention of trusting the medicine and foolishly taking poison attacks head on.
The medicine was only insurance for the worst possible situation. The basic rule for a hunter was not to get hit in the first place.
Chae-ho quickly read the direction of the stale wind brushing against his skin.
He followed the speed and range of the poisonous mist created as the venom evaporated and spread with the wind.
His feet moved smoothly, choosing only the blind spots the poisonous fog could not reach.
BOOM! CRASH!
The tail struck the ground again, launching mud and rocks into the air.
Tap, tap, tap.
Chae-ho's body bent smoothly as if he were dancing.
With the smallest possible movements, he slipped past the paths of the flying fragments.
It was the result of spending an entire week cut off from the outside world, brutally training until he corrected the balance of his body.
There was no longer any delay between the orders from his brain and the movement of his body. By the time his eyes followed something, his body was already there.
The Water Dragon's pupils flashed ominously after failing to land even a single proper hit. Its anger reached its limit.
The creature put strength into its coiled lower body and raised its upper body as high as possible. Then the muscles around its neck began to swell grotesquely.
FWOOSH!
Venom blasted from its mouth like pellets from a shotgun, covering the entire area ahead.
It was not venom falling toward the ground.
It spread widely through the air like countless projectiles.
It was a wide area attack with nowhere obvious to escape, a curtain of deadly poison flying toward him without a single gap, like pouring rain.
Time Slow.
In an instant, the world became thick and sluggish.
The deafening explosions and metallic noises became muffled.
Hundreds of thousands of poisonous droplets hanging in the air began moving so slowly that they almost seemed frozen.
The size and trajectory of every individual drop appeared before Chae-ho like a clear 3D blueprint.
But escaping completely through so many droplets required extreme concentration and precise footwork to slip through the tiny openings.
Chae-ho did not keep the skill active for long.
The moment he memorized the trajectories of the droplets and the places where his feet needed to land, he deactivated the skill.
The world's normal speed came crashing back.
In that brief instant, Chae-ho's body shot forward through the mist.
Slow.
Whenever danger approached, the skill activated again.
0.2 seconds. Then another 0.3 seconds.
Every time Time Slow activated, he confirmed the next trajectory with his eyes.
The instant it ended, he twisted his body and slipped through the gap.
Drops of venom passed dangerously close to the tip of his nose and his shoulder, but not a single one left a wound.
It was as if he were walking through a violent rainstorm without getting wet.
As the Water Dragon's fierce attacks continued, Chae-ho's gaze remained fixed beneath its jaw.
He was not simply dodging.
He deliberately kept a loose grip on his sword while moving in and out of the creature's attack range. He was provoking the Water Dragon, encouraging it to keep spraying large amounts of venom.
Several more violent exchanges followed.
